If We Never Meet Again
by The Motorcycle Boy Lives
Summary: The Greasers ponder the changes that will come with the deaths of Johnny and Dally. Sometimes all you need is a little hope... Oneshot. REPOSTED


**Well, hey people. I was bored, and felt like doing something at least semi-constructive, so I chose to revise and repost my two wonderful one-shots "If We Never Meet Again" and "Love Survives". And now, thank god, I can finally cross this offa my to do list, since I had been meaning to clean them both up for quite some time now. **

**And again, basically, these two one-shots mark the beginning of my fanfiction life, and I would like to take the time to say how grateful I am for all of the wonderful reviews that I've recieved over the summer, and to, once again, politely remind you to REVIEW.**

**Oh, and, uh, yes, since I deleted the original to make way for it's revised counterpart, I take it the old reviews will be deleted as well. Johnny Castle, Flag, Scarlett7, and Lintucuiel, I saved your reviews, so I'll still have them to read whenever I need some cheerin' up.**

**This is a one-shot from Johnny's and Ponyboy's view of Johnny's and Dally's deaths.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Outsiders.**

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**_If We Never Meet Again_**

_**Soon we'll come to the end of life's journey**_

_**And perhaps never meet anymore**_

_**Till we gather in heaven's bright city**_

_**Far away on that beautiful shore**_

_**Johnny's POV**_

I sat on top of the neighboring house to Ponyboy's, watchin' the gang as they all sat out on the porch. The sun would set any minute, and as I sat up there with Dally, I felt real relieved. 'Cause even though right now we were in different worlds, we were watching the same golden sun. The same could be said about the Socs, as they sat in their expensive houses, with expensive clothes, and tuff cars. They were watching that sun too. And, I guess, I didn't have any big problem with that or anything.

Dally lit a Kool. "Hey Johnnycakes, look at that." When I didn't look over, he stood up and poked me with the toe of his shoe. It's not that I didn't want to, I just didn't hear him at the time.

"What?" I asked. He nodded to the sunset. Glory, was it pretty. The sunset was reachin' it's peak, swirling in different shades of pink and purple and orange and gold. I couldn't help but stare at it. I had a habit of doing that to pretty things. After a minute, I turned my attention back to the gang.

We missed them, and I'm pretty sure they missed us, but I couldn't help but wonder how much things were going to change...It wasn't that long ago that me and Dal came here. I wondered sometimes how much they thought about us, or if, one day, we would slip their minds completely.

If I was able to, I would have started crying. My vision would have have gotten blurry, and I would have felt a lump in my throat. But that wasn't possible, since there were no tears in heaven.

Dally had apparently been reading my mind, as he sat down next to me, swinging his legs over the side. "Johnnycakes, don't be sad." he said in a soft and gentle tone. He put his arms around my shoulders and I leaned against him.

"They're always going to love us, and were always going to love them." he said. It was a hot night out, which is probably why they were all outside. It was a lot hotter indoors than outdoors this summer. They were all there...Pony, and Soda, and Darry, and Two-Bit, and Steve. Two-Bit apparently said somethin' strange to Steve, 'cause in a minute, he and Two-Bit were wrestling on the lawn...

"Remember," said Dally "We can see 'em all the time, we'll always be with 'em..."

"Really?" I asked.

Dally never was one to put himself in...Vulnerable situations. But, oddly enough, with me, that had always been a different story.

"Yeah," he said, seriously. "All were doing is waiting for them."

**_If we never meet again this side of heaven_**

_**As we stuggle through this world and it's strife**_

_**There's another meeting place somewhere in heaven**_

_**By the side of the river of life**_

_**Ponyboy's POV**_

We were all sittin' outside, 'cause of the intense heat this summer had brought with it. Were weren't really doing all that much, except relaxing.

Darry came and sat down next to me. "You okay, Pony?" he asked, and started rubbing my back. I smiled and leaned back against him. I knew now that Darry did love me more than anything...I'm glad about that. That was the reason he was so hard on me all the time. I learned that pretty soon after gettin' back with Johnny from Windrixville.

It was that realization that made me bury my face in Darry's chest. "I'm okay..." I said, unconvincingly. I gave a muffled sigh. Darry put his arms around me and started stroking my hair.We were a lot closer now, and in the shortest amount of time, Darry had learned to read me like a book. I was pretty sure he could tell what I was feeling now. "It's okay..." he said understandingly.

I looked over towards the lawn, where Two-Bit and Steve were wrestling. Two-Bit has made some comment that I couldn't hear, and now Soda had gone down to see what the fuss was about. Steve got him in a headlock, and pulled Soda down too. I chuckled a bit. I looked up at the sun where it was in the middle of sinkin'. It wasn't that long ago that Dally and Johnny were killed.

And it wasn't all that long ago that I finally realized they were dead. I remember when Randy came to visit me, when I was in bed that week, I told him that Johnny was alive. Rememberin' it kinda makes my face flush a bit, but I do wish I still believed it.

I knew, when we went to their funerals, that they were my buddies, both of them. And that fact just made it all the harder to deal with. I thought about the last thing that Johnny said to me before he died, quite a lot. "Stay gold, Ponyboy, Stay gold..." he said. I have yet to really understand what that means.. Well, I sort of do. What really made me realize the extent of it's power was, not only the note he left me in our book, but what Two-Bit said to me not long after they died. I had just scared off some Socs with a busted pop bottle, when Two-Bit said, " Ponyboy, listen, don't get tough. You're not like the rest of us and don't try to be..."

For a minute, I had thought he was crazy, then it occured to me that everything that the gang had been tellin' me was connected. It was that night that I read the note Johnny left me over and over again until I had it memorized. I then put it back inside our copy of Gone With the Wind and I slid the book under my bed for safe keeping. I'll keep that note close to my heart forever, and I knw that I'll never go farther then being a greaser.

And since that day, I had never set foot in a gang fight at all. Fightin's useless, I know that too, I guess. I mean, if it's for somethin' real important, than I will, but I don't do it for fun or anything.

I know that I'll get outta this place some day, just like Darry. And, of course, I'll make sure Sodapop does too. The whole gang will be proud of what I'll have accomplished, like I knew they would. The more I think about it, the more I realize, that something gold _can_ stay.

**_Where the charming roses bloom forever_**

_**And where separations come no more**_

_**If we never meet again this side of heaven**_

_**I will meet you on that beautiful shore**_

_**Johnny's POV**_

I broke away from where Dal and I were deep in conversation to look towards the Curtis' house another time. Ponyboy had stood up to get another look at the sunset. If what Dally had said is true, then we will see the gang again. It was like a switch in my mind had been pressed, I I focused my attention to my folk's house, farther down the street. I listened to the entire conversation between my mother and my father, almost like I was standing right in front of them.

My father, probably drunk, was started on another one of his many ramblings. He had started these after I died.

"The little bastard...He deserved what he got..." he said, savagely.

And my old lady, who sat smoking in a corner, deep in thought, took a moment to take in what he had said. "Hm? Oh, yeah," she said uneasily. "Yes he did..."

Dally stubbed out the butt of his cigarette with the heel of his shoe. He looked me over, while I sat, miserable, starin' off into space. Tryin' to lighten the mood, he reached over, gave a small smile, and nuzzled me a little bit. "Hey," said Dally. "It'll be okay. Just don't think about 'em anymore," - He meant my parents - "And you always got me kid..." He cleared his throat.

I had to smile. I always felt so happy when Dal got like this. His way of showin' affection...

I could live with this, no one yelling at me or beating me. I closed my eyes, and leaned against Dally. I let memories of my parents drift away, and in a moment, they no longer existed. And as for the gang, I guess I could take waiting for them, after all, it's not like we'll never meet again.

But until that time, while my eyes were closed, I asked Dal if we could be their guardian angels. He said he'd ask the big man for me. I knew, in the back of my mind, that I was just being paranoid. That the gang would never forget about us. And that I would always have Dal, and I'd never have to see my folks again. From that day forward, we'd be their guardians. I've got no reason to worry, I know everything'll be fine. This is all just in case...We never meet again.

**_Where the charming roses bloom forever_**

_**And where separations come no more**_

_**If we never meet again this side of heaven**_

_**I will meet you on that beautiful shore**_

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**Woo-hoo! It's finished! It's revised! "If We Never Meet Again" at it's best!**

**Thanks for reading my second one shot on the site. I'm happy with the way it turned out...Now the only thing that's left to do, is REVIEW!**

**Poem credit: "If we never meet again" by Albert E. Brumley. A beautiful piece of poetry, if I ever saw one.**

**A/N: I repeated the last verse of the poem twice, so really, it's only three verses.**

**Till Next Time,**

**REVIEW**


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